Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua and San Francisco 49ers
linebacker Fred Warner may play for rival teams, but they’re also real-life best friends.That friendship is the focus of a new national campaign for Experian, entitled “BFF.”
The campaign for the consumer credit and data/tech company promotes Experian’s app as “the ultimate teammate,” and “Best Financial Friend” helping consumers manage
their finances and save money through features available to paid membership subscribers like tracking spending and canceling unwanted subscriptions. “BFF” centers around a “BFFs with
Fred & Puka” ad starring Nacua and Warner, featuring the pair casually chatting on the 50-yard line, running in 30- and 15-second
iterations.
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“BFF” will debut Dec. 27 and run during major sporting events including the College Football Playoffs, and the NFL’s Wild Card and Divisional Playoff games. The
campaign will also air on streaming TV, digital, and social media platforms. Experian is also serving as a presenting sponsor for a new “Real Ones: The League” digital series hosted by
Warner, which recently debuted on YouTube and podcast platforms.
The campaign was created by Experian’s in-house creative agency, The Cooler, and the ad was shot at an unspecified
football stadium in October.
“Fred and Puka’s chemistry was so natural that it made our job easy,” The Cooler Creative Director Todd Miller said in a statement.
“Because they really are great friends off the field, the idea of Experian as your ‘Big Financial Friend’ came to life authentically. All we had to do was let them be themselves and
let the cameras roll.”
The brand’s “Best Financial Friend” positioning may also be intended to counter recent events casting the company as a less-than-ideal friend to
consumers. Back in January, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) sued Experian, alleging it failed to “take sufficient steps to intake, process, investigate, and notify consumers
about consumer disputes, resulting in the inclusion of incorrect information on credit reports,” which could “threaten consumers’ access to credit, employment, and
housing.” A federal court judge dismissed the lawsuit in August, but left open the possibility that CFPB could file an amended complaint against Experian.
A separate proposed class-action lawsuit filed in June alleges that
Experian sold users’ phone numbers to third-party lenders, accusing the company of violating the Fair Credit Reporting Act.